COLLEGE PARK, Md. -
For nearly 94 minutes the University of Maryland women's soccer team slugged it out with No. 9 Virginia, but in the end the Cavaliers escaped Ludwig Field with a 3-2 overtime victory Thursday night.

Virginia got out to a 1-0 lead in the 13th minute on a goal by Lauren Alwine off an assist by Nikki Krzysik. The Cavaliers built a 2-0 advantage thanks to a penalty kick awarded in the 21st minute. Krzysik finished the PK into the left side of the Maryland goal to successfully convert the opportunity.

But the Terps fought back and responded in the 26th minute with the first goal of the season by sophomore forward Annesia Faulkner. Sophomore midfielder Caitlin McDowell tried to get a through-ball to freshman forward Lydia Hastings at the top of the 18-yard box, but a good challenged forced Hastings to deflect the pass over to the left side of the field where Faulkner got a clear run on it and buried the ball into the upper right side of the Wahoo goal.

The penalty kick worked in the Terps' favor early in the second half. McDowell, who worked a great give-and-go with Faulkner, made a run down the left center of the Cavalier box and was fouled to give Maryland its own PK chance. Senior midfielder Nataly Arias stepped over the ball in the 48th minute and blasted the ball into the left side of the goal to tie the match at 2-2.

Junior keeper Mary Casey made several outstanding saves in the match for the Terps, but none better than in the 53rd minute. She came out to cut off the angle on Virginia's Jess Rostedt on the right side, but Rostedt was able to send a cross over to the far post where Krzysik was able to one-time it toward the Maryland goal. Casey reacted quickly, recovered, grabbed the ball out of the air and twisted away to prevent her own momentum from carrying the ball across the goal line. Casey finished the match with eight saves, tying her career high.

The match, which was a hard-nosed, tough contest, appeared to turn in the 83rd minutes. Maryland freshman Jasmyne Spencer dribbled through the middle of the field and tried to squeeze between two defenders just outside the Virginia 18-yard box. The Cavaliers were whistled for a foul and the referee called Krzysik over and seemed to issue her her second yellow card of the match. That would have given the Terps a man-advantage for the remainder of the match, but the referee reversed his decision and gave the yellow card to Alli Fries. That kept the sides even and allowed Krzysik to remain in the match.

The match remained tied at 2-2 until the 94th minute. Alwine sent a corner kick into the middle of the Maryland box where Fries got on the end of it and sent a header to the upper center of the Terrapin goal. Casey was able to react in time and punch the ball over the crossbar, but that gave Virginia another corner. This time Colleen Flanagan got on the end of the Alwine corner and finished it with a header and give the Wahoos the 3-2 win.

"Our team's character was on display tonight," said Maryland head coach Brian Pensky. "We spotted Virginia two goals in the first 20 minutes and just kept plugging away. This team is going to get over the hump; we just have to continue to believe. We showed a lot of heart tonight and that is something we can build upon."

Maryland (5-7-1, 1-4-0 ACC) hits the road for a key ACC showdown on Sunday, Oct. 19 in Blacksburg, Va., against Virginia Tech. The match is slated for a 5 p.m. start at the VT Soccer Field.